press trust of india
Beijing, Sept 8: China Friday defended Pakistan, saying Islamabad has done its “best” to combat terrorism and that some countries need to give it “full credit” for that. The statement came days after Beijing backed the declaration at BRICS summit, which named Pakistan-based terror groups such as LeT and JeM for the first time.
“Pakistan is a good brother and iron friend of China. No one knows Pakistan and understands Pakistan better than China,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said while addressing a joint press conference with Pakistan Foreign Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif here.
Asif is visiting China after China backed the resolution on terrorism at the BRICS summit in Xiamen. The resolution expressed concern over violence caused by terrorist groups, including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) and Haqqani network.
Ahead of his visit, Asif for the first time had admitted Pakistan needed to rein in terror outfits to avoid “embarrassment” on the global stage.
Avoiding any direct references to BRICS declaration, Wang said terrorism was a global issue and that it required concerted efforts from all countries.
“Instead of blaming each other, countries need to work with each other. For years Pakistan has been a victim of terror and more importantly Pakistan is an important participant in international cooperation against terrorism,” he said.
“The government and people of Pakistan made huge efforts and sacrifice on the fight against terrorism and such efforts and sacrifice are there for everyone to see. The international community should recognise that. When it comes to the issue of counterterrorism, we believe Pakistan has done its best with a clear conscience,” he said.
“In comparison, some countries need to give Pakistan the full credit it deserves,” he said in a veiled reference to India and the US.
The declaration of BRICS, in which China is a prominent member had expressed “concern” over the security situation in the region and the violence caused by the Taliban, ISIS, al-Qaeda and its affiliates including Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM) active in China’s Xinjiang and Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the Haqqani network, LeT, JeM, Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Hizb ut-Tahrir.
US kicks Pak bank out for ‘terror financing’
New York: US banking regulators ordered Pakistan’s Habib Bank to shutter its New York office after nearly 40 years, for repeatedly failing to heed concerns over possible terrorist financing and money laundering, officials said Thursday. Habib, Pakistan’s largest private bank, neglected to watch for compliance problems and red flags on transactions that potentially could have promoted terrorism, money laundering or other illicit ends, New York banking officials said. The state’s Department of Financial Services, which regulates foreign banks, also slapped a $225 million fine on the bank, although that is much smaller than the $629.6 million penalty initially proposed. Habib has operated in the United States since 1978, and in 2006 was ordered to tighten its oversight of potentially illegal transactions but failed to comply. New York regulators said Habib facilitated billions of dollars of transactions with Saudi private bank, Al Rajhi Bank, which reportedly has links to al Qaeda, and failed to do enough to ensure that the funds were not laundered or used for terrorism.